At 5am they were already making their way toward the stadium. Two hours before the 10 am start they created a flood of humanity, bubbling with enthusiasm and stacked four or five deep along the sides of the Schladming slalom track. That continued to 10 deep, then 15, then perhaps 20 or more at the best vantage spots.

They came for one reason: to see Marcel Hirscher win the only individual gold medal for host Austria in the final event, the men’s slalom.

After the first run the local fans had reason to remain optimistic. Austria squeezed its four allotted competitors into the top eight of the run, led by Hirscher on top and Mario Matt third. Between them was the always dangerous Felix Neureuther.

Between runs, the massive crowd was subdued. A handful of drunken flag waving searched out their next drink, but the bulk had a “more work to do” attitude as they returned to their seats from lunch.  The deck was stacked in their favor. But they knew, better than most, it was a false confidence.

They were right to be concerned. It was warm, the snow was softening and the course was a monster.  Set by French coach David Chastan it ran fast before working into a series of rythmn changes that boggled the imagination, with undergates, hairpins and flushes in a variety of combinations before opening up again for a speed run over the final 15 gates into the finish.

The US team never saw it and was packing the Audi’s for the drive out of town after the first run having all eliminated themselves in the morning heat. The Austrian fans had seen enough of them anyway.

The agony of the wait grew intensity with Benjamin Raich, the first of the eight Austrians. He had a screaming run going, going slightly into the lead and before grinding to a virtual stop with a single error that pushed him into a pile of soft snow. It brought the Austrian head coach, Mathias Berthold, literally to his knees.

Swede Andre Myhrer skied next and went into the lead, showing there were still options to attacking the course, hill and conditions.

Manfred Pranger, another of the aging Austrian stable, build his first run lead and was skiing well when, oh so suddenly, he slipped a ski tip inside a pole and straddled, bringing forth a moan of protest from the crowd.

German Fritz Dopfer skied clean, but slow and was no factor. Italian Manfred Moelgg went as straight as possible and paid the price with a straddle. This was all good from the Austrian point of view. Matt took to the course and would have made a fantastic story having previously won the slalom crown in 2001 and 2007. When he skied his way to the lead with a gorgeous run the pent up emotions of a two weeks was released in the audience.

Neureuther said he heard it in the start house. “It almost knocked me backwards out of the start,” but as he started down, and put up a green light time, he said, “it got quiet and I knew I was doing well.”

When Neureuther took the lead right back there was still cheering, but much of the applause was merely polite. It had been that kind of up and down emotional roller coaster for many in the stands. And Hirscher still stood at the top.

He led by .28 at the start, and twice his aggressive line nearly cost him as he got back on the heels and 50,000 held their collective breath. After his mistake, though, Hirscher showed why he is a hero in these parts. He scorched the bottom sprint and emerged in the finish with a .42 victory. Austria’s faith in him was repaid with gold and he wallowed in their roaring embrace.

He could not explain the range of his emotions. “The pictures,” he said, “say 1,000 words.”

Gepa photo

The SCOOP
by Hank McKee

Men’s World Championship slalom, Schladming, Austria, Feb. 17, 2013.
Equipment
Skier, skis/boots/bindings
1 Hirscher, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
2 Neureuther, Nordica/Nordica/Marker
3 Matt, Blizzard/Tecnica/Marker
4 Myhrer, Nordica/Nordica/Marker
5 Kostelic, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
6 Pinturault, Salomon/Salomon/Salomon
7 Dopfer, Nordica/Nordica/Marker
8 Byggmark, Voelkl/Fischer/Marker
9 Hargin, Nordica/Nordica/
10 Valencic, Elan//Elan

Men’s World Championship slalom, Schladming, Austria, Feb. 17, 2013. … It is the final event of ten plus a team event of the 42nd FIS Alpine World Ski Championships. … It is the 66th stand alone slalom at a World Championship and 33rd for men. … Jean Baptiste Grange is the defending champion. … There has been only one US male to have won a world slalom title, Phil Mahre at the ’84 Olympics.

It is the second World Championship medal for Marcel Hirscher, both from these championships. … He previously won silver in GS. … He was fourth in his only other championship race, the Val d’Isere GS (2009). … It is his 15 podium result finish of the season in 16 completed races.

It is the first career World Championship medal for Felix Neureuther. … His previous best had been fourth in slalom at Val d’Isere. … It is his seventh podium finish of the season and fifth in slalom.

It is the fourth career World Championship medal for Mario Matt. … He won the slalom titles in 2001 and 2007 and placed second in combined in 2001. … It is his third podium result of the season.

It is the fourth best of five World Championship results for Michael Janyk. … He matches his best result of the season. … It is the first career World Championship result for Trevor Philp. … his only result of the season.

Final Medal Count
AUT – 8 – (gold, gold, silver, silver, bronze, bronze, bronze, bronze)
USA – 5 – (gold, gold, gold, gold, bronze)
FRA – 4 – (gold, gold, silver, bronze)
GER – 4 – (gold, silver, bronze, bronze)
SLO – 3 – (gold, silver, silver)
ITA – 3 – (silver, silver, bronze)
NOR – 2 – (gold, bronze)
SWE – 2- (silver, bronze)
CRO – 1 – (silver)
SUI – 1 – (silver)

Schladming (AUT)
FIS World Ski Championships
Men’s Slalom
Feb. 17, 2013

HARGIN Mattias